It’s hard to imagine now, but over a century ago at the corner of 7th Street and Wilson downtown was one of city’s first public schools and ground zero for Los Angeles’ school garden movement. more › More: How School Garden Mania Swept Los Angeles a Century Ago

Police in Vancouver, British Columbia, are investigating if alleged Los Angeles arsonist Harry Burkhart is also responsible for a string of arson fires in the Canadian province. A spokesperson for the Vancouver Police Department told the Los Angeles Times that discussions about Burkhart, 24, a German national living in Hollywood, were underway with L.A. police. The Times report came after several Canadian news outlets linked Burkhart to at least 12 unsolved arson fires in Vancouver. He and his mother reportedly lived there before moving to L.A. But Vancouver police have said nothing more than that they were talking with the Los Angeles Police Department. Burkhart is jailed in L.A. and charged with 28 counts of arson of property and nine counts of arson of an inhabited structure. His bail was set at $2.85 million. Burkhart was arrested early Monday in connection with the fires that were set beginning last week at some 53 locations around Los Angeles County, including Hollywood, West Hollywood and North Hollywood. His mother, Dorothee Burkhart , was due in federal court Friday afternoon. Federal prosecutors are seeking to deport her on warrants from Germany, where she is accused of fraud. Her son’s anger over the expected deportation was what triggered Burkhart’s four-day arson spree over the New Year’s holiday, prosecutors have said. This article was compiled with information from City News Service. Be sure to follow Beverly Hills Patch on Twitter and “Like” us on Facebook . See the original post: L.A. Arson Suspect Under Investigation in Canada

The mother of arson suspect Harry Burkhart is wanted in Germany on 19 counts of fraud, including charges that she bilked apartment renters out of security deposits and failed to pay for breast-augmentation surgery, according to Los Angeles federal court papers unsealed Tuesday. Dorothee Burkhart appeared in federal court for a detention hearing, but the proceeding has been delayed until Friday to give her time to hire an attorney. According to various reports, her arrest last week may have led to her son’s alleged arson spree in which more than 50 fires were set in the Los Angeles area. Harry Burkhart, 24, allegedly launched into a tirade during his mother’s court hearing last week, a police official told the Los Angeles Times . A German national living in Hollywood, he is being held without bail in downtown Los Angeles on suspicion of arson of an inhabited dwelling and is tentatively scheduled to make a court appearance in Van Nuys on Wednesday. “I hate America,” Harry Burkhart said as he was being arrested, ABC News reported. In court, Dorothee Burkhart reportedly asked loudly for her son several times, repeating in heavily accented English, “Where is my son? What did you do to my son?” At one point, the distraught woman, who is in her early 50s, spoke of “German Nazis.” She said that her son is “mentally ill” and has “disappeared.” A warrant for Dorothee Burkhart’s arrest was issued in Germany in 2007, according to court papers. She is accused of subletting apartments she did not own, failing to pay rent and security deposits on other locations, and of defrauding a Frankfurt cosmetic surgeon out of the equivalent of about $10,000 for breast augmentation surgery she never paid for, according to a provisional arrest warrant. This report has been compiled with information from City News Service. Be sure to follow Beverly Hills Patch on Twitter and “Like” us on Facebook . See the original post: Mother of Arson Suspect in Federal Custody on German Warrant

http://www.youtube.com/v/7dRJQZofi6A?version=3&f=user_uploads&app=youtube_gdata Los Angeles Times consumer columnist David Lazarus talks about why the cost of cable is going up. Continue reading here: Cable rates are on the rise

http://www.youtube.com/v/aeTX0v5j0Q0?version=3&f=user_uploads&app=youtube_gdata Los Angeles Times consumer columnist David Lazarus offers some suggestions on how to keep dangers out of your child’s hands. See the rest here: Vigilance is needed when it comes to toy safety

http://www.youtube.com/v/g0q_hO1Xf-c?version=3&f=user_uploads&app=youtube_gdata Los Angeles Times consumer columnist David Lazarus says that the collapse of AT&T’s plans to buy T-Mobile are better for you. Go here to read the rest: Failed merger is a win for consumers

A federal judge sentenced Barry Bonds Friday to 30 days’ confinement in his Beverly Hills home, probation and community service, but the sentence was put on hold pending an appeal of Bonds’ felony obstruction of justice conviction, according to the Los Angeles Times . The Dec. 16 sentence came after Bonds was convicted in April on one count of obstruction of justice for his 2003 grand jury testimony regarding an investigation of BALCO, the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative that was selling banned steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs to the nation’s top athletes. A 14-time MLB All Star, Bonds also faced several counts of perjury but was not convicted on those charges. Sports Illustrated describes Bonds’ home as a “six-bedroom, 10-bathroom Beverly Hills estate” in the 90210 ZIP code valued at $10.6 million. To read the Los Angeles Times article on Bonds’ sentence, click here . For the Sports Illustrated story, click here . Be sure to follow Beverly Hills Patch on Twitter and “Like” us on Facebook . More: Barry Bonds Sentenced to House Arrest in Beverly Hills Home, Avoids Prison

Playboy Enterprises, Inc. is consolidating its Los Angeles-area offices and moving to a new location in Beverly Hills. The men’s magazine publisher has signed a lease to rent 45,000 square feet in a building owned by Tishman Speyer, according to the Los Angeles Times . The developer owns the former Hilton Hotels headquarters at 9336 and 9346 Civic Center Drive, just a bunny hop away from City Hall. Founded by Hugh Hefner, the first edition of Playboy came out in December 1953 and featured Marilyn Monroe on the cover. Hefner’s famous Playboy Mansion is located in nearby Holmby Hills. To read more about the magazine’s move to Beverly Hills, check out the Los Angeles Times website . Be sure to follow Beverly Hills Patch on Twitter and “Like” us on Facebook . See the original post here: Playboy Leases New Space in Beverly Hills